CLPF Residences at Seaport has acquired Watermark Seaport from Skanska and Twining Properties for $60 million. The deal represents the highest price paid per unit for a multifamily project in the city.

by Keith Loria | Multi-housing News

CLPF Residences at Seaport LLC has acquired Watermark Seaport, a 301,000-square-foot multifamily development in Boston from Skanska and Twining Properties. The deal represents the highest price paid per unit for a multifamily project in Boston. CLPF Residences is scheduled to take ownership of the development in the first quarter of 2018.

Read More →]]>Twining Properties breaks ground on $190 million mixed use development known as Mass+MainBob FlackSat, 02 Dec 2017 04:33:13 +0000http://nerej.com/twining-properties-breaks-ground-on-190-million-mixed-use-development-known-as-mass-main559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:5a222c41e4966bbfda1867acNew England Real Estate Journal | Cambridge, MA
Twining Properties, joined by state treasurer Deborah Goldberg and mayor
Denise Simmons, broke ground on Mass+Main, a 308,000 s/f development in
Central Sq.
The $190 million Mass+Main development is a joint venture between developer
Twining Properties and its capital partner Mass PRIM. Construction of the
three buildings will be completed in phases from fall 2018 through
mid-2020.New England Real Estate Journal

Cambridge, MA

Twining Properties, joined by state treasurer Deborah Goldberg and mayor Denise Simmons, broke ground on Mass+Main, a 308,000 s/f development in Central Sq. The project will create 308 mixed-income apartments and 17,000 s/f of retail overlooking Lafayette Sq., on the MBTA’s Red Line and between MIT and Harvard University.

The $190 million Mass+Main development is a joint venture between developer Twining Properties and its capital partner Mass PRIM. Construction of the three buildings will be completed in phases from fall 2018 through mid-2020.

Mass+Main will mark the entrance to Central Sq., at the intersection of Massachusetts Ave. and Main St., the project will have 248 market rate and 60 affordable apartments in three buildings offering a variety of housing options from a tower with views of the Charles River and Boston, a six story building with studios and roommate units, and a four story building designed for families.

“Mass+Main will create a vibrant new place to live, shop and dine in Central Square,” said Alex Twining, CEO of Twining Properties. “We’re proud to be creating a wide array of apartments for varying incomes and ages above the Central Market an eclectic mix of shops and dining overlooking the park which will create a dynamic public gathering place.”

Designed by CBT Architects to LEED Gold standards, Mass+Main will be a sustainable green community which includes green roof terraces, energy tracking, wind energy and smoke-free apartments. This transit oriented development with access to the Red Line and MBTA buses, will have car sharing, electric charging stations, bike sharing with an onsite Hubway Station.

“The affordable housing and mixed-income elements of this development give families an opportunity to stay and live in Cambridge,” said Goldberg. “PRIM, representing the public employees and taxpayers of Massachusetts, is proud to invest in projects like this that prioritize affordable and mixed-income housing in a way that supports our communities. This is an example of that commitment.”

Mass+Main will extend Central Sq.’s shopping district with small retail shops and enhance the pedestrian and urban experience. Shops, restaurants and food vendors will line sidewalks and passageways, creating retail for the residents and visitors to Central Sq.

“As someone who has long been working to ensure that Cambridge adds to our stock of affordable housing and who wants to find ways to breathe new life into Central Sq., I’m excited because Mass+Main moves us closer to both of these goals,” said mayor Simmons. “Mass+Main is the first Cambridge apartment development to provide 20 percent affordable housing units, and it’s a terrific example of our intentional effort to create and support greater socioeconomic diversity in Cambridge.”

Twining Properties focuses on the investment and development of urban mixed use residential, office, retail and hotel buildings at transit nodes along the Northeast Corridor from Boston to New York City.

A joint venture is developing Mass+Main, a $190 million project that will feature 248 market-rate and 60 affordable units. The property is slated for a mid-2020 completion.

“The affordable housing and mixed-income elements of this development give families an opportunity to stay and live in Cambridge,” said Deb Goldberg, state treasurer of Massachusetts, in a prepared statement.“Prim, representing the public employees and taxpayers of Massachusetts, is proud to invest in projects like this that prioritize affordable and mixed-income housing in a way that supports our communities. This is an example of that commitment.”

Twining Properties, joined by State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg and Cambridge Mayor E. Denise Simmons, today broke ground on Mass+Main, a 308,000 square foot development in Cambridge’s Central Square. The project will create 308 mixed-income apartments and 17,000 square feet of retail overlooking Lafayette Square, on the MBTA’s Red Line and between MIT and Harvard University.

Mass+Main will mark the entrance to Central Square, transforming one of Cambridge’s signature blocks through the activation of an exciting collection of small shops. Located at the strategic intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Main Street, the project will have 248 market rate and 60 affordable apartments in three buildings offering a variety of housing options from a tower with dramatic views of the Charles River and Boston, a six story building with studios and roommate units, and a four story building designed for families.

“Mass+Main will create a vibrant new place to live, shop and dine in Central Square,” said Alex Twining, CEO of Twining Properties. “We’re proud to be creating a wide array of apartments for varying incomes and ages above the Central Market an eclectic mix of shops and dining overlooking the park which will create a dynamic public gathering place.”

Designed by CBT Architects to LEED Gold standards, Mass+Main will be a highly sustainable green community which includes green roof terraces, energy tracking, wind energy and smoke-free apartments. This transit oriented development with easy access to the Red Line and MBTA buses, will have car sharing, electric charging stations, bike sharing with an onsite Hubway Station.

“The affordable housing and mixed-income elements of this development give families an opportunity to stay and live in Cambridge,” said Massachusetts State Treasurer Deb Goldberg. "PRIM, representing the public employees and taxpayers of Massachusetts, is proud to invest in projects like this that prioritize affordable and mixed-income housing in a way that supports our communities. This is an example of that commitment.”

Mass+Main will extend Central Square’s shopping district with a diverse collection of small retail shops and enhance the pedestrian and urban experience. Shops, restaurants and food vendors will line sidewalks and passageways, creating retail for the residents and visitors to Central Square.

“As someone who has long been working to ensure that Cambridge adds to our stock of affordable housing and who wants to find ways to breathe new life into Central Square, I’m excited because Mass+Main moves us closer to both of these goals,” said Cambridge Mayor E. Denise Simmons. “Mass+Main is the first Cambridge apartment development to provide 20 percent affordable housing units, and it’s a terrific example of our intentional effort to create and support greater socioeconomic diversity in Cambridge.”

The $190 million Mass+Main development is a joint venture between developer Twining Properties and its capital partner Mass PRIM. Construction of the three buildings will be completed in phases from Fall 2018 through mid-2020.

Central Square’s Mass + Main on its way to altering the Cambridge skyline - 195-foot tower Bob FlackThu, 16 Nov 2017 19:17:00 +0000https://boston.curbed.com/boston-development/2017/11/16/16652820/central-squares-mass-main-construction559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:5a11d8ac53450af6e5d6a286by Tom Acitelli | Boston CURBED
Construction has started on Mass + Main, a project that will add three
buildings and 306 apartments to Cambridge’s Central Square.
One of those buildings will run to 19 stories and 195 feet, placing it
among the tallest in Cambridge (though a proposal down the road in Kendall
Square might render that height quaint in a bit).

Construction has started on Mass + Main, a project that will add three buildings and 306 apartments to Cambridge’s Central Square.

One of those buildings will run to 19 stories and 195 feet, placing it among the tallest in Cambridge (though a proposal down the road in Kendall Square might render that height quaint in a bit).

The construction caps years of planning by developer Twining Properties. The project also overcame objections from some locals, including members of a neighboring Elks Lodge, concerned about the project’s scope.

Mass + Main will, indeed, represent a big change for the area. As the Globe’s Tim Logan points out: “The look of Massachusetts Avenue in Central Square hasn’t changed much for decades, with its mishmash of squat storefronts and low-rise brick buildings from an earlier time.”

Twining plans to wrap construction by fall 2019. CBT Architects designed the project.

The look of Massachusetts Avenue in Central Square hasn’t changed much for decades, with its mishmash of squat storefronts and low-rise brick buildings from an earlier time. That’s about to change.

Read More →]]>New Haven mixed use complex Is SoldBob FlackMon, 25 Sep 2017 10:42:00 +0000http://www.nhregister.com/news/article/New-Haven-mixed-use-complex-Is-Sold-12227832.php559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:59ca2e0032601e31bf342ca5New Haven Register | Luther Turmelle
The ownership of one of the city’s newest mixed-use complexes has been sold
for $39.6 million.
The property was purchased by a limited liability company, 1245 Chapel
Street ... a directory of registered businesses lists 1245 Chapel Street
LLC’s business address at the same location as Twining Properties, a New
York City-based company.

New Haven Register | Luther Turmelle

The ownership of one of the city’s newest mixed-use complexes has changed.

The Novella, which opened on the corner of Chapel and Howe streets in October 2015, has been sold for $39.6 million, officials with Institutional Property Advisors, the commercial real estate firm that brokered the deal, said Monday. The sale of the property comes just five months after after Fairfield County-based developer Randy Salvatore announced he was putting the property on the market.

The property was purchased by a limited liability company, 1245 Chapel Street. A search of the Connecticut Secretary of State’s online directory of registered businesses lists 1245 Chapel Street LLC’s business address at the same location as Twining Properties, a New York City-based company.

Twining Properties specializes in managing mixed-use properties located near transportation hubs along the Northeast Corridor from Washington, D.C. to Boston.

NEW ROCHELLE – The developer of the city’s vision for an extensive Echo Bay waterfront district, with shops, apartments, restaurants and parks, is turning to residents for suggestions.

Twining Properties, the New York City-based developer chosen by the City Council to redevelop and revitalize the run-down Echo Bay area, recently held its first community meeting to get input from those who would use the future site on Long Island Sound.

“The old style of development was ‘Go do what you want,’” said Alex Twining, CEO of Twining Properties. “Now, the best solutions usually weave into the neighborhood, and people who have been living there forever know what feels good. Part of what we’re trying to figure out is, rather than just assume that people want this or that, is to see what we can integrate and fine-grain (the project).”

More than 27 acres make up the site along the Sound, which includes the soon-to-be-moved City Yard and a deteriorating Armory building. Twining will build Pratt Landing, a 12.5-acre waterfront district in the center of the overall site.

The first waterfront district meeting was attended by more than 50 eager city residents, who worked interactively in groups with site plans to craft their own ideas of what they’d like to see at Pratt Landing. Most groups mentioned wanting a waterfront pathway, a boat launch and converting the historic Armory into a sort of public marketplace.

Some of the more unique ideas called for a trolley to the city’s downtown, a brewery and restaurants with rooftop seating.

There was one common theme in nearly every group presentation: No big box stores, such as Walmart or Home Depot.

“I don’t think big box is very practical anymore,” said New Rochelle resident Chris Selin. “Retail has changed today. If you go down into Larchmont, there’s so many empty stores, it’s amazing. We were talking art galleries, farmer’s markets, pop-up stores; something a little bit more interesting.”

Twining's original vision, pitched to the city in 2014, called for a mix of about 450 housing units, about 100,000 square feet of retail, and 100-200 hotel rooms. The property would also feature a waterfront esplanade and more than three acres of open space.

Marvel Architects, Twining's partner on the project, used waterfront examples from Somerville, Massachusetts, Washington, D.C., and Brooklyn to craft ideas for New Rochelle's vision.

We’re going to put city streets direct to the water so everybody can get out there and wander around between the buildings, whether or not they live there," Twining said. "It’ll feel like a place you want to go."

But it'll be a while before residents can expect to visit Pratt Landing, Twining said. The new City Yard, which is expected to begin construction in January, would take about 1.5 years to build, he said. Once the new Department of Public Works home is built, the old one can be deconstructed, and environmental testing would be done after that.

Twining said he hopes to begin construction on Pratt Landing three years from January.

Many residents at the community meeting said they didn't mind the lengthy schedule as long as the plan opens up the waterfront for future generations.

“It is the developer’s problem now to figure out how to satisfy everybody’s need and desire for access with the fact that he has to make a return on investment," Selin said. "That’s a very difficult site to develop, but I think it’s going to be very attractive for the whole city of New Rochelle to have something that we can be proud of on our waterfront."

Two more community meetings will be held this fall to refine the plan, Twining said. He encouraged the public to attend or take a survey on the waterfront district website.

]]>Twining Properties gets go-ahead for Echo Bay project planningBob FlackSat, 11 Feb 2017 00:57:58 +0000http://www.twiningproperties.com/news/2017/2/10/twining-properties-gets-go-ahead-for-echo-bay-project-planning559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:589e5fbd3a0411f23e645a7aWestfair Online | by Bill Heltzel
The New Rochelle City Council approved a new agreement with Twining
Properties LLC on Feb. 7 to develop 12.5 acres of city property at Echo
Bay.
Twining, based in New York City, has proposed a $300 million mixed-use
project, called Pratt Landing, in an industrial area at the edge of
downtown.

By Bill Heltzel

The New Rochelle City Council approved a new agreement with Twining Properties LLC on Feb. 7 to develop 12.5 acres of city property at Echo Bay.

Twining, based in New York City, has proposed a $300 million mixed-use project, called Pratt Landing, in an industrial area at the edge of downtown.

The general concept is to convert industrial property to a village-like setting that opens up views of the Long Island Sound and connects the waterfront to downtown.

Twining will have to decontaminate City Yard, a public works facility built in 1916 that has devolved into an eyesore of garages, repair shops, salt piles and recycling areas. Public works will be relocated next year to 70 Nardozzi Place, near Interstate 95.

Twining presented plans to the city council in October that call for creating 450 housing units, 80,000 square feet of retail space, 25,000 square feet of offices, hotel with 100 to 200 rooms and a parking garage on four city blocks near Main, Huguenot and Pratt streets. The developer must also restore and find new use for the decaying New Rochelle Armory that was built in 1931.

Forest City Residential got exclusive rights to develop the site in 2007, but the city council scuttled the project in 2013 after the developer scaled back plans. Twining won exclusive development rights in 2014 and that agreement was expiring.

Under the new agreement, Twining is expected to take 12 to 18 months to prepare an environmental impact statement. If the council likes what it sees, the city and developer can sign a land disposition agreement.

Construction will start this summer on a long-planned apartment development in Central Square, after it won final approval from the Cambridge Planning Board Tuesday.

Developer Twining Properties expects to launch work soon on Mass+Main, a two-building, 285-unit development at the corner of Massachusetts Ave. and Columbia Street that will replace a garage and former medical testing facility with one of the tallest buildings in that section of Cambridge. The builders have to set aside 20 percent of units at affordable rents, partly in exchange for being allow to build 195 feet high.

Twining expects the complex will be complete in late 2019.

]]>Cambridge’s Mass+Main Complex in Central Square Adds ApartmentsTwining PropertiesThu, 23 Jun 2016 02:22:00 +0000http://boston.curbed.com/2016/6/22/11992060/cambridge-mass-main-central-square559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:576c9897b8a79bfab4b0de29Curbed Boston by Tom Acitelli, Editor
The Mass + Main complex is one of Cambridge’s more consequential
developments planned or underway, and it just got bigger. Developer Twining
Properties has increased the number of apartments planned for the Central
Square development from 232 to 260, an increase of 12 percent. What’s more,
the number of apartments designated as affordable has increased by about a
half-dozen.Permalink

]]>

Mass+Main developers to seek more units before starting construction next summerTwining PropertiesWed, 22 Jun 2016 02:30:00 +0000http://www.cambridgeday.com/2016/06/17/massmain-developers-to-seek-more-units-before-starting-construction-next-summer/559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:576c9a966b8f5b241e32b610Cambridge Day by Marc Levy
Construction on the Mass+Main apartment complex won’t start in Central
Square for another year, but it’s coming with even more housing than
expected, with more affordable housing to match. If the developers get
their special permit, construction would begin in summer of 2017 and last
for two years, with Mass+Main apartments ready for move-in during the fall
of 2019.Permalink

]]>

27-Story Watermark Court Square Rises One-Third of the Way to Its Final HeightTwining PropertiesThu, 19 May 2016 11:43:00 +0000http://newyorkyimby.com/2016/05/27-story-watermark-court-square-at-27-19-44th-drive-rises-one-third-of-the-way-to-its-final-height.html559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:575fecb2d51cd49e879cda74New York YIMBY by Vitali Ogorodnikov
Watermark Court Square, the 27-story luxury rental building at 27-19 44th
Drive in Long Island City, has risen past its tenth floor, about a third of
the way to its final 282-foot height. The LEED-certified building is
developed by Twining Properties, with The Ashforth Company as an investment
partner. TG Nickel & Associates is the general contractor for the project,
which Handel Architects designed as a slender stack of floor-to-ceiling
windows set within a grid of grey and dark brown brick. Completion is
expected in 2017.

Latest NewsTwining PropertiesThu, 31 Mar 2016 19:28:00 +0000http://westfaironline.com/78459/smart-growth-drives-development-in-suburban-communities/559300d2e4b088352d0f848c:55944efbe4b0ec24733dec2f:5702bf12b654f934aedf0e00Smart growth drives development in suburban communities
WESTFAIR COMMUNICATIONS
Developer Alex Twining, president and CEO of Twining Properties in New York
City, noted that Westchester County has $1 trillion of built
infrastructure, making it ripe for high-density development. “If we’re not
doing something, we’re just wasting our money,” he said.
Twining said smart-growth developers need forward-thinking government
leaders and staff “who really can work with us and think outside the box.”
Like Glendening, he said zoning needs to be more flexible and adaptive,
such as the form-based zoning codes adopted by New Rochelle and Yonkers
that regulate the physical forms of development in an area rather than
specific uses of properties.Westfair Communications

Smart growth drives development in suburban communities

By John GoldenMarch 31, 2016

Visiting Westchester recently, Parris N. Glendening, the former Maryland governor, dined one evening at a restaurant on Central Avenue. A national advocate for smart growth – high-density, mixed-use development near mass transit centers to reduce sprawl and protect the natural environment in more walkable cities and suburbs – Glendening glimpsed the commercial avenue’s possibilities beyond its streaming lanes of exhaust-emitting auto and truck traffic.

“What a grand boulevard that could be,” he mused before an audience of about 225 real estate, finance and planning professionals and municipal officials from New York and Connecticut at Pace Law School.

Glendening – the keynote speaker at a recent panel discussion on smart growth presented by the Land Use Law Center at Pace and the Business Journal’s parent company, Westfair Communications – was alluding to a rising trend among municipal planners and private developers that promotes foot traffic in place of driving in urban areas being redeveloped for a new generation of downtown residents. The new urbanism championed by Glendening, first as Maryland’s governor and now as president of Smart Growth America’s Leadership Institute and the Governor’s Institute on Community Design, and adopted by an increasing number of municipalities in this region is to a large degree, as New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson noted on the panel, “the old urbanism all over again.”

For public officials like Bramson, smart-growth development proposals often encounter strong local opposition. “The job of a mayor in moving development forward is tough,” said panel moderator John R. Nolon, a Pace law professor and founder of the Land Use Law Center. “There are two things that Americans hate: one is sprawl and the other is density.”

The millennial generation, which includes more than 83 million young Americans, is a major driving force behind smart growth development, Glendening said. Unlike the 75-million-strong baby boomer generation, a majority of college graduates today, 60 percent, decide where they want to live and then look for jobs there rather than finding a job first and moving to that location

“Once you get a 25-year-old saying, ‘I can see myself living here,’ you’ve won half the economic development battle,” Glendening said.

For companies hiring those millennials, the “number-one qualifier” when considering relocating to a community is that “it must be on a transit line,” he said. “Office parks just do not work in attracting talent to these companies.” That has led landlords to redevelop their office properties for mixed uses at the Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, a leading high-tech research and development center, and along Westchester’s Platinum Mile, where White Plains and Harrison officials have revised zoning and master plans to accommodate mixed-use development.

Both public officials and developers on the panel cited financial obstacles to smart growth. Bramson said the risk-to-reward ratio can be unfavorable for developers, especially in communities most in need of redevelopment.

“It costs the same to build a high-rise in New York City as it does to build a high-rise in Westchester,” said Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano. But a developer’s return on investment is less in a suburb such as Yonkers, he said, where the city and businesses have partnered in a Generation Y multimedia marketing campaign “to attract the millennials back to Yonkers.”

Despite the financial obstacles, Spano said the city has about 2,000 residential units completed or in various stages of development on its waterfront.

Developer Alex Twining, president and CEO of Twining Properties in New York City, noted that Westchester County has $1 trillion of built infrastructure, making it ripe for high-density development. “If we’re not doing something, we’re just wasting our money,” he said.

Twining said smart-growth developers need forward-thinking government leaders and staff “who really can work with us and think outside the box.” Like Glendening, he said zoning needs to be more flexible and adaptive, such as the form-based zoning codes adopted by New Rochelle and Yonkers that regulate the physical forms of development in an area rather than specific uses of properties.

Arthur Collins II, president of Collins Enterprises LLC in Greenwich, a pioneering developer of high-rise apartments on the downtown Yonkers waterfront, agreed with Twining that financial incentives are needed by smart-growth developers. His company in Yonkers received tax credits from the state’s brownfield cleanup program for developers who remove environmental contaminants from a redevelopment site before construction.

Collins said developers also need a pro-business government administration to work with and a municipal master plan to guide development. Voicing a common complaint of developers delayed by extended municipal reviews and approvals of their projects in Westchester, Collins said, “There are many, many towns that have a permit process that has actually gotten out of hand.”

Joan M. McDonald, a former New York state transportation commissioner and former economic and community development commissioner in Connecticut, noted that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has budgeted $100 million for the state’s Cleaner, Greener Communities program to support smart growth development. “This is a huge deal and I think that is the wave of the future,” she said.

But climate change and the series of tropical storms and hurricanes that wreaked major damage in this region in the last five years might have slowed smart-growth initiatives, McDonald said. “I think with 2011, smart growth might have taken a little bit of a backseat to resiliency” and investment to strengthen infrastructure and properties against future storm disasters.

Glendening said smart growth with its focus on walkable communities “has a strong and practical emphasis on equity” in a society where working families earning less than $50,000 annually spend on average one-third of their income on transportation. Yet in some new transit-oriented development areas, residential costs are so expensive that middle-class workers have been forced to move out, he said.

“There’s got to be a very conscious attention to these issues,” Glendening said. “How we grow can help address the inequity and have a huge impact on the future of this country.”

Last week’s departure of Related Beal as a partner in the $1.6 billion Quincy Center redevelopment created an opening for[ t ] TwiningProperties, the New York real estate company that recently opened its second luxury apartment building in Cambridge’s Kendall Square. Read More →

A deal is emerging to build one of the South Boston Waterfront’s largest developments: a pair of 22-story towers on Seaport Boulevard that would include up to 800 apartments and a 300,000-square-foot retail and entertainment complex. Read More →

Cambridge’s Central Square is “primed” for fresh housing, shopping and dining options, after a pair of developers snapped up a portfolio of 15 properties, including several aging lab facilities that Quest Diagnostics will be departing. Read More →